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Ya-te-veo Tree
The Ya-te-veo Tree (aka: Flesh-eating Tree, Roper, Hekatonceires) is a dangerous carnivorous plant found exclusively in the tropical jungles of the Old World and the remote regions of the Outer Kingdoms. This legendary zoophyte feeds mostly on birds, large insects, and other small animals. However, if given the chance, they will gladly consume larger prey... like, for example, ponies. Appearance The Ya-te-veo Tree has a short, thick trunk with dark greenish brown bark. Near the top of the trunk, the Ya-te-veo has five glowing green "eerie eyes" placed in a way that gives it a constant 360 degree range of vision. At the very top of its "body" are several long tendrils surrounding a circular mouth with two rows of trap-like fangs Behavior and Life Cycle Ya-te-veo trees start their lives when its parent spits up a single flying seed-pod that resembles a mix between a coconut and a dandelion seed. When the Ya-te-veo seed finds a sutible location (usually the top of a small hill), it will then plant itself and sprout, fueling a rapid growth period by devouring all the small plants it can reach (the lair of a Ya-te-veo can be recognized by the lack of shrubbery, grasses, and weeds in the surrounding area). When the Ya-te-veo reaches its full adult size of eight to twelve feet tall, the Ya-te-veo will begin to release a sweet odor, signalling its switch from a vegetarian diet to a carnivourus odor. Once some edible-sized animal enters its strike range, the Ya-te-veo will quickly send out one or more of its tentacle-like branches to attack the poor creature and drag them into its waiting maw. After eating a sizeable-enough amount of food, the Ya-te-veo will go into a state of dormancy and wrap itself in its own tendrils to sleep and digest. After about two weeks, the Ya-te-veo will open itself up again and resume eating anything unfortunate to pass within its range of reach. Combating and Weaknesses Fire, Lightning, and Earth magic are said to be very effective against this plant-monster. The eyes are also a weak spot, as the Ya-te-veo will release any prey in its grasp if the eyes are striken with a ranged weapon (arrows, bullets, throwing dagger, harpoon, etc.). Trivia and Popular Lore *The Ya-te-veo Tree's name is said to literally translate to "I see you there." Rumor has it that this name comes from the (unconfirmed) fact that the Ya-te-veo will wisper this exact line before dragging victims into it's toothy maw. Creepy, huh? *Rumor has it that the savage Centaurs will sacrifice captured prisoners of other races to this horrible plant. *According to Heliotian lore, the Ya-te-veo were once a race of one-hundred handed giants that served the will of the dark godess Selene during her war against the Kingdom of Helios. As punishment for their crimes, the Hekatoncheires were sentenced by the scribe-goddess Troth to be forever rooted in a single place, never again able to move across the land. Inspiration *A mythical man-eating tree of the same name. Category:Creatures Category:Zoophyte